Active clinical trials for "Malnutrition"

In the last two decades, cash transfer (CT) programs have emerged as a popular approach to long-term poverty alleviation. While the main goal of cash transfer programs is to reduce poverty, they also have the potential to improve many development outcomes, such as health and education. While many studies, mainly in Latin America and Asia, have investigated the impacts of CTs on poverty and food security and have, for the most part, found positive impacts, less is known about the impacts of CTs in Africa south of the Sahara, and, in particular, West Africa. Moreover, despite the fact that cash transfers have been shown to lead to decreases in poverty, improvements in household food security, and increases in health service utilization, impacts on children's nutritional status (including anthropometric measures) are generally small (Manley, Gitter, and Slavchevska 2013). Consequently, policymakers and governments are left with the question of how to design social safety nets, such as cash transfers, to achieve greater impact on diet quality, health, and nutrition. The overall goal of this research is to generate evidence and knowledge on an integrated program implemented by the Government of Mali that includes a combination of cash transfers and targeted nutrition interventions. The information generated will inform program implementers and policymakers about best options to improve food security and nutrition among vulnerable groups and individuals in West Africa. Specifically, the main objectives of the research are To provide evidence on the contribution of integrated social transfer programs to enhancing household welfare, food security, dietary diversity, and maternal and child nutrition in West Africa. To test different features and combinations of cash transfers and targeted nutrition interventions, and assess their impact on food security and maternal and child nutrition and health outcomes in Mali. To generate knowledge regarding the pathways of impact of these different program packages, identify the most effective and efficient modalities in the context of Mali, and derive lessons learned for other countries in the region.

Oral supplementation with branched chain amino acids (BCAA) increases the levels of circulating BCAA, stimulates BCAA uptake in muscles, and decreases amino acid release from muscle, eventually promoting muscle anabolism. However, uptake of oral BCAA by muscle is not complete, pointing out that non-muscular tissues, as the splanchnic bed and gut microbiota, may play a role in BCAA metabolism. This protocol aims at studying the impact of protein-energy wasting (PEW) and of refeeding with branched chain amino acids (BCAA), on gut barrier including gut microbiota, in chronic hemodialysis (HD) patients. The investigators speculate that: HD patients with PEW have altered composition and function of gut microbiota, increased permeability of epithelial gut barrier, increased systemic inflammation but decreased fecal immunoglobulin A (IgA), and a dysbalance of plasma appetite mediators in favor of anorexigenic mediators, compared to HD patients without PEW, non dialyzed patients with chronic kidney disease and well-nourished non obese subjects, BCAA supplementation of HD patients with PEW reverses these changes, thereby improving nutritional state, physical function, quality of life and resistance to infections.

Cancer patients receiving treatment such as chemotherapy experience a variety of symptoms that interfere with their appetite and their ability to eat and enjoy meals. Therefore, adapting meals in a way that responds to these symptoms might be a good strategy to improve patient satisfaction, nutritional status and hence, quality of life. In this vein, the investigators hypothesize that meals from FoodforCare at Home will contribute to the quality of life of cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy when compared to usual care.

Compare the use of nandrolone associated with corticosteroid for the treatment of cancer-induced malnutrition to treatment with corticosteroids alone in patients with tumors in the high gastro-intestinal tract, liver, pancreas and bile ducts in palliative treatment.

Rationale: Undernutrition risk among community-dwelling older adults in developed countries is shown to be around 24%. Increasing protein intake is a strategy that is feasible as well as efficacious to reduce undernutrition in community-dwelling older adults. A promising strategy to increase protein intake among older adults, is to offer dietary solutions with normal foods that fit their current daily eating patterns. For this reason, home-delivered protein-rich readymade meals and protein-rich dairy products will be studied in this research. Objective: The primary objective is to study the effectiveness of commercially available protein-rich readymade meals and protein-rich dairy products in increasing protein intake of older adults who use a meal-delivery service to a level of 1.2 g/kg bodyweight/d. Secondary objectives include: studying effects of these meals and dairy products on total daily energy intake. Further, studying the acceptance of and compliance to the meals and dairy products. Study design: The study will be performed as a single-blind randomized, controlled, four-week trial in a real-life setting: in community-dwelling older adults' own homes. Study population: The target group of this study are community-dwelling older adults who use a meal-delivery service. Intervention: Both groups will receive readymade meals for each day during 4 weeks. They will also receive dairy products to freely consume during the intervention period. The intervention groups receives protein-rich meals and protein-rich dairy products, the control receives standard meals and food products. Main study parameters/endpoints: Difference in daily protein intake between intervention and control group. Secondary parameters: energy intake and acceptance (liking).

Children in extreme poverty lack adequate care and face increased health risks. The earlier poverty strikes in the developmental process, the more deleterious and long-lasting its effects. There is, however, growing evidence that early interventions can prevent the negative consequences. Such interventions are effective, particularly when they are of high quality, organized at home and parents are involved. Recently, baseline assessment of developmental and nutritional status of SOS children and children in extreme poverty in Jimma region of South-West Ethiopia revealed that these children have developmental problems in language, motor, social-emotional skills and nutritional status. The impact of play-oriented stimulation activities integrated into the existing SOS basic program, on developmental outcomes, has never been investigated in this context. The main objective of the study is, therefore, to evaluate the impact of play-oriented stimulation integrated into the basic SOS program on the developmental outcomes of children living with foster families. This was done by comparing the intervention children with their age-matched children (control), not receiving the stimulation package. It was hypothesized that this package would significantly improve the developmental skills of these children.

This cluster-randomized controlled trial will evaluate the effectiveness of a four-day hospital-based intervention program for primary caregivers of children with severe malnutrition.

OPEN-LABEL, RANDOMISED, SINGLE ORAL DOSE, FOUR-PERIOD, REPLICATED, CROSS-OVER TRIAL TO ASSESS THE BIOEQUIVALENCE OF FENIRAMIDOL HCl 400 MG FILM TABLET (TEST DRUG) IN COMPARISON WITH CABRAL 400 MG FILM TABLET (REFERENCE DRUG) IN HEALTHY MALE SUBJECTS UNDER FED CONDITIONS

The present study aims at evaluating the anti-inflammatory effects of a novel food in older adult volunteers. Briefly, this randomized, double-blind and placebo-controlled study is performed on 91 apparently healthy older adults (age≥65 years) before and after 12 weeks' consumption of a snack enriched with camelina Sativa oil. Subjects were randomized into two groups (active group vs placebo group).

In preparation for a future mechanistic study, investigators now propose to test the specific hypothesis that carnitine consumption is not reduced in PAH, that plasma carnitine levels are stable over time in PAH and that carnitine supplementation in PAH can increase plasma carnitine and thereby delivery of carnitine to the RV and possibly improve RV function. Investigators propose three aims in humans to test this mechanistic hypothesis, 1) Measure the oral consumption of carnitine in human PAH. This aim will use food diaries and carnitine supplement use questionnaires in PAH patients to test the hypothesis that carnitine supplementation is uncommon in PAH and food consumption is adequate. Aim 2) Measure the stability over time in plasma carnitine levels in PAH patients. This aim will test the hypothesis that plasma carnitine is not affected by disease severity and is stable over time in PAH patients. Investigators will measure plasma carnitine concentration and markers of fatty acid oxidation at Visit 1 and Visit 2. 3) Perform a mechanistic pilot study using carnitine supplementation to enhance circulating carnitine in PAH. This small pilot study will test the hypothesis that carnitine supplementation increases plasma carnitine (primary endpoint) and will test for physiologic effects using six minute walk testing, echocardiography and plasma markers of lipid metabolism.